The present invention relates to a character recognition technique adapted for a small-sized electronic apparatus.
A character recognition device is known which is adapted to trace the shape of a charater, by a finger or a pen-type jig, on input electrodes in a matrix array, detect coordinate positions of the input electrode which the finger or the jig contacts, and recognize the character based on the detected coordinate positions. Such character recognition device is disclosed, for example, in GB No. 2029619A and GB No. 2092352A. In order to recognize the features of a hand-written character pattern more accurately, a greater number of input electrodes must be provided in close proximity to one another with one input electrode corresponding to one coordinate position, making it impossible to obtain a compact electronic unit.
In particular, when a character pattern is intended to be recognized with less number of input electrodes as disclosed in GB No. 2092352A, a method of tracing a character is limited in such a manner that, when the character writing position is displaced or superposed, the character is feasibly recognized erroneously. Thus, each character should be precisely traced, by an operator.